Skip to main content

Other actives

Zinc PCA

Also listed as zinc pidolate, zinc pyrrolidone carboxylate

Zinc bound to a natural moisturizing molecule, sold for oily and blemish-prone skin. Topical zinc's acne evidence is modest and mostly in combinations.

Weak evidenceTypical strength: Usually 1% or less

What it is

Zinc PCA pairs zinc with PCA (pyrrolidone carboxylic acid), part of the skin's own natural moisturizing factor. Zinc has mild antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects and may reduce oil production in lab studies, so zinc PCA is sold for oil control and blemishes, usually at low levels.

Most clinical evidence for zinc in acne involves zinc taken by mouth or zinc combined with a prescription antibiotic, not zinc PCA on its own.

How strong is the evidence?

Weak evidence

Reviews support zinc's anti-inflammatory role in acne, largely from oral and combination treatments. A 2020 Cochrane review set out to assess topical zinc for acne but reported no conclusive findings for it, and specific trials of zinc PCA are small and often manufacturer-run.

What it's used for, checked

Oily skin

Unproven

Sebum-reducing effects are mostly from lab and small studies.

Acne

Mixed

Zinc helps as an add-on in some studies; on its own the evidence is weak.

Who should be careful

  • Well tolerated.

The studies

Every citation is checked against its PubMed record.

  1. Zinc therapy in dermatology: a review.
    Gupta M, Mahajan VK, Mehta KS, Chauhan PS · Dermatology Research and Practice · 2014 · Review

    Reviews oral and topical zinc across skin conditions, including acne, rosacea, melasma and infections, and topical zinc salts as soothing, photoprotective and anti-dandruff agents.

  2. Topical azelaic acid, salicylic acid, nicotinamide, sulphur, zinc and fruit acid (alpha-hydroxy acid) for acne.
    Liu H, Yu H, Xia J, Liu L, Liu GJ, Sang H, Peinemann F · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2020 · Systematic review

    49 trials (3,880 people): azelaic acid is probably less effective than benzoyl peroxide and about as effective as tretinoin for acne; evidence for salicylic acid, nicotinamide and alpha-hydroxy acids was low or very low quality, from small head-to-head trials, and no conclusions were reported for zinc or sulphur.